Grabbing a brief weather window

Usually at this time of year, BSARU are gearing up for what for many is the highlight of the training year - our annual Winter Skills course in the Cairngorms. Because our local hills are relatively low and located at the southern end of Scotland, we can’t always rely on suitable snow to practise the skills and techniques required for safety in serious winter conditions. But, of course, sometimes that weather does arrive here, and therein lies the rub. We need to be competent and secure in deep snow, ice and white- out, and to keep those skills current, we need to use them. Hence the annual trip north

The weekend away represents a significant drain on the team’s resources, and this year we’ve decided for financial reasons to forego the Winter Skills weekend, and instead to keep a close eye on the local forecast, and try to strike when the iron is hot (or rather - when the hills are frozen). To that end, the gorgeous wintry weather over Valentine’s Day, when the Cheviots shone pure white against a blue sky presented the ideal opportunity, and many of the team’s members rifled through their kit cupboard, loaded up the rucksack and headed out.

Below are some photos from that weekend, most taken locally, with some from a bit further north, where conditions were equally beguiling…